The greatest threat to our nation lies inside us all: the inability to
see the humanity in those who are different from or in conflict with us.
We are a strong nation of people who have proven a nearly absolute ability
to defend against external threats, but, we are hurting ourselves at a
greater rate than an enemy has ever been able. To illustrate that point,
as most of us know, in 2001 we lost 2,977 Americans in the largest attack
on American soil by an external threat in over a century. According to
the Centers for Disease Control; however, for the most recent year with
data, we killed each other 16,238 times in 2011 and another 38,285 Americans
killed themselves that year.

Right or wrong, we have felt the need to militarize our police force, indicating
that we now view ourselves as a danger matching the threats abroad. The
problem goes beyond violence. Political divisiveness has peaked at a point
where hatred and fear of each other dominate over working together to
improve our physical infrastructure, schools, health care, or for any
other constructive purpose. We are clearly failing to appreciate the humanity
in each other, as this xenophobia leads to the dehumanization of each
other necessary for such violence and hatred.

We need a reminder of our common humanity, the fact that despite our differences
we all want the same thing out of the American experience—a safe
place to live, raise families, express ourselves freely, and excel in
our individual and collective pursuits of happiness. We need reminded
reminder that we have more in common with each other than we have differences.
We need to see that when we dehumanize a person different from ourselves
we are extinguishing the same relationships and consciousness that we
hold sacred in our own lives.

The humanities—defined as the study of human culture—force
us to recognize these commonalities in one another. Whether it is a play
that confronts the civilian population with the difficulties faced by
returning combat Veterans or a children’s book that tells the story
of a foreign community or culture, the stories are those that make us
human. It is very difficult to hate those you recognize as human. They
are stories that transcend any specific culture because they are the stories
of family, trauma, pain, community, sport, faith, and other universal
commonalities. The details change from culture to culture or experience
to experience, but the themes are essential to us all.

Once we find common values, we face our differences not as threats but
as diverse assets we all bring to the American experience. If we are to
overcome the divisiveness we face, we must find common ground and unite
around the unique diversity that makes up the United States. To do that,
we must first get to know each other’s stories and the humanities
can serve as our collective storyteller.